Fair is fair. I was skeptical of this but James Durbin really does sound good with Quiet Riot. It's almost like Kevin DuBrow. Almost. I still think all these lineup changes are ridiculous, but we're here in 2017, where nothing makes sense anymore, anyway. Enjoy.

Reader Comments (19)

Allyson, you don't need to walk back your confusion on this issue (a different issue from Durbin's comments re: online trolls).

He sounds young and spry. He is! They sound good . . . enough. They are! The question is this: what is the end game with all of this nonsense? Re-recorded album. Okay, I get that. Hate to introduce the family to your new girl while the ex is wailing in the background.

But what, really, is all of this going to lead to that wasn't in the cards with any of the other singers? As I mentioned in a previous post, the stir in the news about this new hire had nothing to do with Quiet Riot. It had to do with Durbin's background. That is not a position of power from which to start a "new era" of a band.

So we find Quiet Please mimicking one of their albums: Condition Critical. Banali has infused a bit of youthful vigor. But you can't goose a ghost that has lost its host. High billing on low-rung festival (club, really) shows? Okay. That puts the food on the table. Low billing on mid-tier festivals (sheds, often)? Okay, that adds some A-1 to the Sizzler steak. But this is a tough chew.

I wish them the best. But . . . Now You're Here, There's No Way Back. That is hard advice to take. But you offered it. So consider it, Banali. Consider it.

Sigh...I don't know, yes he sounds good. It's just Kevin was QR to me. I just can't get into this "newer" version. I'm not sure if you brought Rudy and Carlos back in (Never happen) along with this latest guy if it would change my feelings for this band. Watching a few of the videos posted, something just seems off about the whole band to me, I'm sure James will become more comfortable as time goes on, but the rest of the band don't look happy, don't look like they care and sure don't look like they are enjoying it! To me (and I've seen it more than a few times!) they are just phoning it in to "put food on the table".

I actually think he kinda sounds like Dubrow here. Funny part is Kevin was adamant that he DID NOT wanna do this song,but Spencer Proffer and he rest of the band pretty much forced his hand. Turned into their biggest hit. That being said, they're literally doing a remake of a remake of a remake here,and doing it in in Witchita, Kansas. Not quite the forum in LA but hey,we all gotta eat...

I think Durbin sounds pretty good, but the rest of the band is lackluster at best. I love Quiet Riot, and I can't wait to hear the new album, but I'll pass on any live performances that come through the area.

To Badland's comment, starting a new band would be great if Banali hadn't been in so many already. Freakshow (2009) was fantastic, but there were issues with who was supposed to be paid what. Blackthorne (1993, with Graham Bonnet and Bob Kulick) was a good album, Heavy Bones (1992, with Gary Hoey on guitar and Joel Ellis on vocals) was really good. Each of these bands only lasted one album though. I'd love to see any of these three lineups reunited for some additional music.

I like James Durbin more than I like Quiet Riot, they're not one of my fave 80s bands though I do like a few of their songs.

He did a good job for his first show but I doubt he'll stay with them for more than a year, maybe 2 at most, and Road Rage with probably be the only album he records with them. I'm very skeptical of Frankie as I did heard that Frankie pulled the album they recorded with Jizzy Pearl the day it was released. Also why did he get Shaun Nicols for Road Rage if James wasn't available at the time? His contract with One Epic Night was only for 4 months, couldn't Frankie have waited if he originally wanted him like he claims? And so many line up changes since DuBrow's death? Does Frankie even know what he's doing? I look forward to hearing Road Rage with James on vocals when it's released. Or should I say if it's released?

Oh well I hope James makes the most of this opportunity and that it will lead to something better for him. No one can compare to the legends but James is one of the better singers among those in modern hard rock and metal. His own material isn't all fantastic but some of it's really good. Memories of a Beautiful Disaster was a decent debut, with Higher Than Heaven, Deeper and the bonus tracks Liberate, Back For More and Crawling Home as the stand out tracks. The Wind-up Records forced pop experiment Celebrate was a disappointment and killed much the momentum he built during his debut era. Till Death, his latest single with Alex Grossi is a very good song but the rest of the EP is just OK. His best work to date is his self released 3rd album Riot On Sunset, almost all the songs on that album are outstanding.

JT, good call on Freakshow. that was a great album. Alexia, Banali didn't pull the Jizzy Pearl material immediately. the album had six new songs with Jizzy on vocals, and a few older live tracks with DuBrow on vocals. Banali eventually did pull it for reasons I don't understand, but it was available for a while. The new tracks with Jizzy were pretty tasty, especially "Bang for Your Buck."

Bob, thanks for setting the record straight on the Jizzy album. I don't get a lot of the decisions Banali makes, seems like a pretty unpredictable guy. I'm sure Durbin is well aware this gig has expiration date as he already stated that while QR will be his main focus for now he'll continue to release his own material. He did another another EP with Alex Grossi which will be out in the next month or so. He's also going to release an acoustic EP of his own.

I saw that you mentioned that his voice lacks grit and I want to address that quickly. I've seen just about every live performance video of him that exists and I can tell you he definitely has grit, snarl and rasp in his voice. The audio in most of the videos from this show are very bad quality so we can't hear those vocal complexities. I do agree with the swagger a bit though. He has his own but he has to kinda mesh that DuBrow's a bit to provide some familiarity for the QR fans. Alex Grossi said they only had 2 short rehearsals before this show, so there's that too.

Gary, I'm gonna let you in on a little secret. Kevin DuBrow was lying his ass off when he said he hated "Feel The Noize".. He was planning on recording that song for years before the re-named DuBrow band went back to using the Quiet Riot moniker. It was a surgically planned action, that they would cover the Slade tune that had been a #1 hit everywhere in the world, except America.

Durbin is probably the best vocalist Quiet Retread has had post Du Brow.

I'm with Gary, he does kinda sound like Du Brow. No doubt, he's intentionally practically doing an impression of him here.

And JT gets it right -- the rest of the band sounds lackluster. I'll take it a step further -- they sound "off", as in bad timing. But as Ace and others have pointed out here before, apparently Banality (believe it or not, that's autocorrect at play here) ain't the drummer he used to be. And judging by his résumé (appreciate the history, JT -- I have ALL of those albums and they are all great!), Banali really was. But now, alas, he's a clown.

However, the last two things he did right is (1) Get Durbin and (2) re-record the new album with Durbin's vocals. And now, at least they can pique some interest in the local rags in the ads for the dumps in Midwestern flyovers like Bumf*ck Peoria where they mostly play -- to wit:

"May 26th -- Frank Banali's Quiet Riot featuring James Durbin! Doors Open 8 P.M. 2-for-1 Pabst and $3 dollar Coronas from 8-10. Back with a new album and American Idol star, James Durbin on vocals, this latest version of the band is ready to ROCK you as never before!"

I did not realize Road Rage was a re-recording. I haven't kept up with musical happenings quite as much the past couple of years like I used to. Was it released with whoever was before Durbin? Or is it just floating around in bootleg land?

JT, only 1 song was leaked from the original version of Road Rage with Nicols on vocals. That song was called The Seeker. I've never heard it but reviews at the time were decidedly negative.

Durbin stated in lengthy interview with an Irish rock station last week that he's rewriting the entire album and is almost done. He's then going to spend the next few weeks recording vocals for the album. The album is expected to be released in the summer last I heard.